Stuff Worth Sharing

I do not want to admit it; but I will. I have not been very good at recycling at home. In fact, I have been downright terrible. I hardly ever use my recycling container.

How can I run one of the largest cell phone recycling programs of its kind and still possess a high degree of Recycling Apathy at my house? This must change!

My catchy phrase that I have used as an excuse for years is: “I care; but I just don’t care enough” to recycle. What is most interesting, as I look inside myself, is that I really never even tried to recycle at home. I always felt like it was a hassle to sort out my trash. I even got on my high horse and thought to myself, “I help to recycle thousands and thousands of cell phones – I am doing my part!” But, you know what? I have discovered that recycling at home is just as easy as taking out the trash. Yes, that is my personal recycling at the end of my driveway from this week.

How to make recycling at home a permanent habit

1. Find one thing to recycle today and put it in your recycling container. Make it easy – like a newspaper or a plastic water bottle or milk jug or an aluminum can(s). For me, just getting started was easy enough to help me make this a new habit in my life.

3. Locate your most convenient recycling resources. Everyone lives near a school or church that has either a paper, glass, or multi-recycling container. Our glass recycler is a huge Ripple Glass purple container that is only 6/10 of a mile from my house. It takes me 1 minute to get there. Here is the Ripple Glass locator map to see where you can recycle your glass.

4. You might already be paying for it; so put it to use. I am charged a mandatory recycling fee of $5.10 on my trash invoice for three months of unlimited curbside recycling. I feel like I have a personal recycling butler come to my house once a week, take away all the stuff that can be recycled, and I only have to pay him 42 cents per week.

Every image on your copy machine is stored and vulnerable to theft. Every single copy you have made – both business and personal – financial reports, medical reports, intellectual property, brainstorm sessions, might be on the hard drive inside your copy machine.

This CBS investigative report is 5 minutes long. It is worth viewing it all and then talking to your IT/Data Security department to make sure that your company is aware of this vulnerability.

Wait till you see the section about the copy machine the investigators picked up that came from a police department. WOW!

Clear your Cell Phone data, too

Obviously, clearing data from your old cell phones is critical, too. It is one of the most frequent questions I get asked regarding recycling. We’ve even made two step-by-step videos to help clear data from your cell phones before you donate them to Cells for Cells. (How to Clear My Blackberry and How to Clear My Treo).

Seth Heine, of EcoATM was kind enough to email me a response with some additional information about the EcoATM:

Joe and his Yoohoo on the bus: davelinger via flikr

“EcoATM response:

That is a very cool write up! I have posted an official response below to some of the musings / questions as well (I was once thrown out of the skating rink for trying to boost a Yoo-hoo from the vending machine 😉

“Thanks to Jason and Cells for Cells for the kind mention – we like what C4C gets done every day as well 😉

For the record, I co-founded ecoATM with some braniacs, – this idea is far larger than any one person could ever build anyways… ecoATM is based on the core concept that the best way to get people to act, or change their behavior is to pay them; so far we seem to be correct, we are collecting hundreds of phones weekly with each ecoATM, and have big plans to roll these kiosks out to leading retailers nationwide in the next few years.

ecoATM kiosk

Of course, the minute you put money on the table, you attract the attention of not only everyday consumers, but sneaky types as well; that’s why we visually and electronically inspect the items, so we not only know exactly what it looks like, but also connect it to our systems so we can electronically test the items as well (this also allows us to remove data from the devices on the spot;-). So the fake Wi-Fi plug in the photo (or a fake / demo phone) won’t get far into testing before we figure out something is not as it should be… We also take photographs and get contact info (drivers license etc) from the customers, so we’d likely be sending “visitors” to people who keep trying to trick our machines as well…

We’ll be adding video game, laptop / computer / monitor and other electronics sequentially as we grow, so the ecoATM will become a hub of recycling and trade in / trade up activity in the same places people buy their electronics, bringing it all full circle.”

Super-recycler, Seth Heine, who founded Collective Good, is the brains behind the EcoATM.

But does it make recycling easier?

The first thing that came to my mind when Seth emailed me the info was this photo:

Will you be able to place an EcoATM in a high school or college? Will kids try to hack it or trick it or just cheat it? (Yes, one time, when I was a kid, I tried to get the vending machine to give me an extra Twix.)

And, it still begs the question: How will the EcoATM influence us, as consumers, to be better at recycling? Seth once told me, “Gravity is the most powerful force keeping people from recycling.” Gravity, in this context, is the lack of action. Or, as I like to say, “My old cell phone is in my desk drawer and it is too heavy to get out and take to the recycler.”

Also, I’ve never been a fan of passive-style recycling programs. There are cardboard or plastic collection boxes at the entrance of a many retail stores–usually empty. It is all just green noise.

Environbank, out of Sydney, Australia, states that their vision is “To empower the community to leave the world a better place – one beverage at a time.” Similar to the EcoATM, the Environbank recycles beverage containers.

Again, the idea looks super cool; but my main thought is that looks like the world’s most expensive recycling tub.

It would be interesting to find out what Environbank’s business model is. Because if I am the office manager or recycling manager and I have to put a beverage recycler in the break room or lunch room; I may have a hard time getting approval for one of these.

Additionally, how long can a company like Environbank stay in business when the net profits on recycling plastic bottles and aluminum cans are miniscule? The logo licensing fees can only take them so far i.e. Coca Cola, BP, and Bowerman’s (in Australia).

Don’t get me wrong, Envrionbank is cool and innovative. With a ton of public education and a solid business model, this could be the standard beverage container recycler throughout the world.

Bebe and Alice

I am always impressed with someone who can marry art with recycling. That is exactly what Heather Baker has done with Bebe + Alice out of Estes Park, Colorado.

At Bebe + Alice you’ll find eco-friendly goodness that winks at the past and nods to the future. You can expect items to be one of a kind, made with care and designed around the philosophy that Grandmother’s slow and simple ways were best.

Here’s an example of what amazingness Heather can do. Pay special attention to the description:

a Gnome’s Home crafters apron

Description

Upcycled denim created the perfect landscape for this gnome’s home. Momo’s Wonderland fabric makes the perfect mushroom tree pocket and apron strings. Upcycled sheeting for the cloud, vintage rikrak and buttons for grass and flowers makes this a delightful addition for your crafting inspiration! Rikrak has been left unsewn in one small space so you can slip your scissors in for easy access.

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Even More Companies That Help Make Recycling Easier

The Ecopreneurist had a great article last year that is worth looking at again:

I wonder how many times my emotions have gotten the better of me in my business decisions.

I know that I am a very emotional guy when doing business. I have the butterflies and knots in my stomach when I have to deal with something I perceive as difficult or challenging – or just out of order. Not that there is anything wrong with butterflies and knots – I just know mine frequently come from an “Oh, no!” perspective instead of “This is exciting and exhilarating” perspective.

Believe me, I am an expert at hiding my emotions – but my mind rages like in the “Serenity Now” episode of Seinfeld. Kramer!

One thing that I have done to help avoid the “put the shovel down, time for a backhoe” situation is to surround myself with mentors – actually three mentors – all older, seasoned, mature, and cool.

Some of the best advice I have received recently probably went in one ear and out the other; BUT the CALM that came with the advice made up for the fact that I might have missed the words. And it gives me another opportunity to talk to my mentors again, after I have calmed down.

Oh, and I’ve got to mention that my Dad and Mom are great mentors, too. Thanks Dad and Mom!

And, thank you, @Garyvee for another great post and for this equation Business > Emotion.